Hello Readers!
Welcome back to my author's blog!
Regrets. It can be a scary concept. As you age, time slips by faster than you can even imagine and the word regret starts to creep into your life as stealthily as a ninja. I watched my father struggle with his health in his older years, putting aside his dreams and then he eventually passed. My dad was the eternal dreamer but I watched his dreams slip into the abyss from which they were never to return. Seeing so many of his dreams unfinished was hard. It left quite the impression on me, I assure you.
But life is busy and the excuses mount. I was still raising young boys and working full time when my dad passed more than 10 years ago so "I didn't have time" to pursue dreams. But regret was lurking around the corner.
As years passed, my boys grew into men and started forging their own paths in life. Summer jobs, dating, college... and then the pandemic happened. It was such an unsettling time for ALL and our family was not immune to it's havoc. Losing a beloved family member, another being hospitalized; social distancing from loved ones; online college from home; working/teaching online; businesses shutting down; losing jobs.
It was a very scary and hard time everywhere.
It was during this time that regret reared it's ugly head in my life. Both my husband and I lost our jobs, ironically on the same day, that first year of the pandemic (2020). We went into survival mode and got busy getting new jobs and health insurance for our family. Thankfully it was only a couple weeks later we had new jobs, but navigating our new "normal" was challenging and there was only time to live day by day.
Then in early 2021, my oldest son and his fiancée decided they were not waiting anymore and it was time to plan a wedding. That Fall of 2021, they married outdoors and it was the most beautiful day! It renewed the light within me and I could see the future again! That winter I decided that if I learned anything from the pandemic, it was not to have regrets. It had become clear to me that we are not guaranteed tomorrow and I wasn't getting any younger either.
Then on the cold winter night of December 19, 2021, I began my storytelling journey. I wasn't sure where it would lead me, or if I would actually accomplish my goal of writing and publishing a book, but I knew I had to try. My dad had always wanted to write a book but he never got the chance. I knew in my heart that I didn't want the same for me. So, I chose not to regret! And am I ever glad I did :)
Thank you all for following me on my journey and supporting my storytelling ventures!
Happy DETours!
Jenn
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